Support NeoGAF

[clav]

Right guys. Quite a weird problem here.

This has happened about 5 times since January and it scares the hell out of me every time. Last night, I was uninstalling a few steam games when Windows started to really chug, I mean really chug (about 10 second delay) and then just powered off. And when I would start her up, it wouldn't even boot, the fans would start and after about 2 seconds it would turn itself off and then on again doing the same thing each time. The only way to stop the cycle is to power off at the back. After about an hour of leaving it off, it boots normally again.

At first I thought it was the CPU overheating but if you take a look at the attached image, it's hovering at 40. Is that too hot?

(PS. I have noticed it's happened a few times after physically moving the entire tower)

EDIT: Just checked CPU-Z and it says my CPU is running at 3.8Ghz...I have no idea how to overclock and I didn't even think you could on the non-k series?

Either a power supply or motherboard problem. Probably the later. Have you tried updating the BIOS?

Your CPU is definitely not hot at all. If it were hovering at 70 degrees Celsius, I would be worried.

 

[prodystopian]

Did you click the "Show processes from all users" button?

Yea, and aside from system idle process, it's much closer to 10% than the 50% that the graph seems to be hovering at.

 

[Milchjon]

How do I completely remove a program if I unprofessionally and incompletely deinstalled it?

I tried to remove the Zune client from my PC. Being the idiot I am, I didn't find how to deinstall it (of course I didn't google it either). Instead, I just decided to delete the folder.

Now, a few weeks later, I want to reinstall it, but when I try to, it tells me that Zune is already installed.

So how do fix this? Any help would be appreciated!

 

[krzy123]

How do I completely remove a program if I unprofessionally and incompletely deinstalled it?

I tried to remove the Zune client from my PC. Being the idiot I am, I didn't find how to deinstall it (of course I didn't google it either). Instead, I just decided to delete the folder.

Now, a few weeks later, I want to reinstall it, but when I try to, it tells me that Zune is already installed.

So how do fix this? Any help would be appreciated!

There are probably registry keys that need to be deleted, you can usually download a cleaner application that'll do this for you (delete dead entries to non-existant applications). I've used CCleaner with mixed results, may work.

Microsoft has this tool that i found: http://support.microsoft.com/mats/Program_Install_and_Uninstall from this link: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929358 (might be easier, no idea!)

 

[Stat Flow]

Okay. So I have an HP G7 laptop that is whatever, pretty average. Bought it in October of 2011. I've started to see it just being kind of sluggish on W7. Nothing that can't be handled, but still kind of slow.

I just replaced my HDD with a SSD.

Holy fuck! I can't believe how much faster everything is. It's truly not an exaggeration when people say SSD's increase speed. I ordered both an SSD and 8GB of Ram (currently I have 4GB). 8GB of RAM will be here tomorrow, so I'll pop that in and it's like my laptop is brand new :O

If you don't have an SSD, get one. Of course, I don't need a lot of space on my laptop so 64GB is enough (iTunes Match + Dropbox + Google Drive + SkyDrive = don't need shit).

 

[t-ramp]

Okay. So I have an HP G7 laptop that is whatever, pretty average. Bought it in October of 2011. I've started to see it just being kind of sluggish on W7. Nothing that can't be handled, but still kind of slow.

I just replaced my HDD with a SSD.

Holy fuck! I can't believe how much faster everything is. It's truly not an exaggeration when people say SSD's increase speed. I ordered both an SSD and 8GB of Ram (currently I have 4GB). 8GB of RAM will be here tomorrow, so I'll pop that in and it's like my laptop is brand new :O

If you don't have an SSD, get one. Of course, I don't need a lot of space on my laptop so 64GB is enough (iTunes Match + Dropbox + Google Drive + SkyDrive = don't need shit).

Yeah, and the prices are pretty great now, too.

Regarding RAM, I realized yesterday at work that 1GB of RAM is not enough to use Windows 7 without serious performance issues. Luckily I nabbed a spare 2GB stick from an unused machine and swapped it into the PC, which made a huge difference.

 

[PaulLFC]

Thinking of buying some homeplugs / powerline adapters to make wired connections upstairs easier. The ones I'm looking at are passthrough adapters, mainly because I don't have a spare electrical socket near to my router - there are two sockets, one occupied by the router itself and the other by the phone.

If I get passthrough homeplugs, can I just unplug the router, plug in the homeplug into that socket and then plug the router into the passthrough, and once the ethernet cables are connected it'll work fine?

I can't see there being any problems with that, but I thought it's probably best to check before I spend money on them.

 

[Arklight]

A component on my laptop motherboard has burned. It's the one to the left of the white connector with 91030 on it.

Picture below:
http://i45.************/f44kyq.jpg

Is it safe to still boot the laptop?

Errr. tinypic doesnt work.. cant access any other fileshare sites at work.

 

[t-ramp]

A component on my laptop motherboard has burned. It's the one to the left of the white connector with 91030 on it.

Picture below:
http://i45.************/f44kyq.jpg

Is it safe to still boot the laptop?

Errr. tinypic doesnt work.. cant access any other fileshare sites at work.

I don't know, sorry. Is it under warranty?

 

[The Abominable Snowman]

Hopefully someone here can help me

I'm trying to find out how to automatically insert headers/greetings in my Outlook. I had it at my last job and i configured it on my old home computer, but I cannot find the first step on Office 2010 for the life of me. In the field im in emails kinda are recommended to be in this format for filekeeping purposes (I have to state the date and the to email field in EVERY outgoing email, and state my contact info at the bottom)

Basically I want an email to open like this:

[Date]
[To email address]

Good [Morning/Afternoon/Evening] [To First Name, Last initial],
bla bla bla

[Thanks],

[My First name my last name]
[My Email address]
[My office phone number]

I figured I could just make a signature for the last part, which is easy enough, but the header i'm still completely stumped, and the only thing I can find online is some hackneyed Office/Outlook plugin someone is trying to sell for 29.99

 

[Natiko]

I've been having this weird issue lately where any saved video I try and play, regardless of format and regardless of the video player, lags. My CPU usage can be at 0% and my physical memory can be below 20% and it still happens. I didn't have this issue before and my computer is fairly new (I got it back in February). I was just wondering if anyone know what could be causing this.

 

[WoodWERD]

Me again, giving this one more shot before I do the unthinkable and take my rig to the pros. Also posted on Tom's HW but didn't get any help :\ Since my initial post (link), I've swapped out the video card for another HD 7750 but from a different manufacturer. Same problem, so something tells me the issue is not with the card. I originally thought I was only losing picture when my screen went black, but I've confirmed the pc is actually locking up.

Before, I would get the black screen within 5 seconds of my desktop loading after boot-up, but I've managed to extend that. My buddy and a Fry's guy both suggested I could have ram problems, so I tried that route. I removed 6 of the 8 gigs of ram and thought that solved the issue, only to have it black out a while later. I'm now testing my last stick of ram, and I've had mixed results with each. One stick only kept the system running for a good 10 minutes or so, while another stayed up for several hours. During that span the system was fine and I was able to stream netflix, surf, and everything else I normally do. I then put the system to sleep, wake it up the next day, and it blacks out within 5-10 minutes. WTF!

I'm not noticing any excessive heat from the RAM or vid card when it blacks out. Any other suggestions on where to look for problems?

 

[accx]

Me again, giving this one more shot before I do the unthinkable and take my rig to the pros. Also posted on Tom's HW but didn't get any help :\ Since my initial post (link), I've swapped out the video card for another HD 7750 but from a different manufacturer. Same problem, so something tells me the issue is not with the card. I originally thought I was only losing picture when my screen went black, but I've confirmed the pc is actually locking up.

Before, I would get the black screen within 5 seconds of my desktop loading after boot-up, but I've managed to extend that. My buddy and a Fry's guy both suggested I could have ram problems, so I tried that route. I removed 6 of the 8 gigs of ram and thought that solved the issue, only to have it black out a while later. I'm now testing my last stick of ram, and I've had mixed results with each. One stick only kept the system running for a good 10 minutes or so, while another stayed up for several hours. During that span the system was fine and I was able to stream netflix, surf, and everything else I normally do. I then put the system to sleep, wake it up the next day, and it blacks out within 5-10 minutes. WTF!

I'm not noticing any excessive heat from the RAM or vid card when it blacks out. Any other suggestions on where to look for problems?

Could it be a faulty PSU?
You should download the latest drivers from here (instead of using the original drivers on the cd):
http://support.amd.com/us/Pages/AMDSupportHub.aspx

Remove the drivers like you did before. Uninstall via programs and features, reboot to safe mode, run driver sweeper, reboot again and install the ones you downloaded.
Since switching RAM doesn't seem to do much i would suspect either insufficient/faulty PSU or faulty Motherboard.
You could try running Memtest for a couple of hours just to be sure.
Hardware (like ram, gpu, hdd) and driver issues almost always defaults to a blue screen rather than just a black screen.
Have you tried a fresh install?

EDIT:
Also, i would try connecting the computer to a regular monitor through dvi, just to be sure there's not a conflict with the TV/HDMI.

 

[WoodWERD]

Thanks for the prompt response...I haven't really been able to rule anything out at this point heh. I suppose it could be the mobo and/or PSU but I don't have spares lying around that I could test. Would I be having problems in safe mode if the PSU or mobo were going bad? And if I were to try memtest and it locks up again, I assume it keeps a log that might tell me what froze?

- Tried latest catalyst drivers as well as older versions, same results
- I tried different inputs between the card and TV with no luck, but I'll try an actual monitor to be sure
- Haven't tried a clean windows install but I guess that's next, bleh!

 

[accx]

Thanks for the prompt response...I haven't really been able to rule anything out at this point heh. I suppose it could be the mobo and/or PSU but I don't have spares lying around that I could test. Would I be having problems in safe mode if the PSU or mobo were going bad? And if I were to try memtest and it locks up again, I assume it keeps a log that might tell me what froze?

- Tried latest catalyst drivers as well as older versions, same results
- I tried different inputs between the card and TV with no luck, but I'll try an actual monitor to be sure
- Haven't tried a clean windows install but I guess that's next, bleh!

Memtest usually stops when hitting faulty sectors iirc. I would monitor it for a while (say, 15 minutes?) to see if it actually hits a memory problem or if the computer hard locks like before. If it's the latter my guess would be on the motherboard or psu.
What are the other specifications? Everything you know about the hardware would be fantastic
EDIT: You should do this with one stick at a time. Preferably i would tell you to atleast let it do one pass, which could take anywhere from 40 minutes to hours. It's up to you.
I tend to cheat sometimes and just do about 15 minutes per stick because if the stick is faulty it almost always shows up in the beginning.

There's a chance you could experience the same issues in safe mode but not necessarily.
I would suggest backing up and doing a clean install before spending more money on additional hardware though.
If you have a lot of drives connected, i would suggest removing all but the one with windows on it. Disconnecting everything except one RAM stick, GPU and CPU fan and the drive with windows could give you some idea if the PSU is getting pushed too far. Optical drives and other stuff won't make much difference though but it's a good place to start to see if it increases stability.

 

[WoodWERD]

I really appreciate the insight accx, if you're ever in Austin I'll buy ya a beer! I'll try the things you suggested and report back, in the mean time here are my specs:

1 x GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
1 x Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3500320AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive (primary drive)
1 x Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EACS 1TB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive (secondary)
1 x ENERMAX Liberty ELT500AWT 500W ATX12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
1 x SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B - OEM
2 x G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
1 x ASUS HD7750-1GD5-V2 AMD Radeon HD 7750 VGA 1 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card (I currently have the 'Diamond' brand version of the same card installed)
1 x Windows 7, 64-bit Ultimate N version

The pc sends signal to my Denon receiver (model AV-1909 iirc), which sends signal to my Samsung DLP (model HL-S5087). My 360 and PS3 also run through the receiver, and both of those work without issue. I tried connecting straight to the TV via HDMI and VGA but the same problem occurred, which presumably eliminates the AVR as a potential culprit. I had the occasional HDMI 'handshake' problem with my old HD 4850, but a quick turn off/on of the AVR would usually fix that (I suppose this could have affected my PSU!). Other than that things usually ran pretty smoothly. It finally dawned on me that the majority of this machine is approaching 5+ years old...

 

[accx]

I really appreciate the insight accx, if you're ever in Austin I'll buy ya a beer! I'll try the things you suggested and report back, in the mean time here are my specs:

1 x GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard
1 x Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 Wolfdale 3.0GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3500320AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive (primary drive)
1 x Western Digital Caviar Green WD10EACS 1TB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive (secondary)
1 x ENERMAX Liberty ELT500AWT 500W ATX12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply
1 x SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-S203B - OEM
2 x G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory
1 x ASUS HD7750-1GD5-V2 AMD Radeon HD 7750 VGA 1 GB GDDR5 Graphics Card (I currently have the 'Diamond' brand version of the same card installed)
1 x Windows 7, 64-bit Ultimate N version

The pc sends signal to my Denon receiver (model AV-1909 iirc), which sends signal to my Samsung DLP (model HL-S5087). My 360 and PS3 also run through the receiver, and both of those work without issue. I tried connecting straight to the TV via HDMI and VGA but the same problem occurred, which presumably eliminates the AVR as a potential culprit. I had the occasional HDMI 'handshake' problem with my old HD 4850, but a quick turn off/on of the AVR would usually fix that (I suppose this could have affected my PSU!). Other than that things usually ran pretty smoothly. It finally dawned on me that the majority of this machine is approaching 5+ years old...

Yeah, unless the motherboard have become damaged somehow, which is only likely if the psu totally fails (if it gets hit with a power surge or something like that), i'm gonna bet that the psu can't handle it.
PSU's tend to decline in quality year by year and can't output as much amps as it could when it was brand new.
It's not listed to be recommended when checking amd's website either:
http://support.amd.com/us/certified/power-supplies/Pages/listing.aspx
While that PSU you got was considered great when it first was released, the quality PSU's have these days are much better compared to 5 years ago.

I still would suggest disconnecting most of the stuff (except the power to the mobo and the stuff i listed earlier), just to see if there's a stability increase.

 

[WoodWERD]

I tried losing the 2nd drive, cd, one of the case fans and it didn't make a difference; cut off closer to the 5 second mark actually. It makes sense that it's likely the PSU, I guess I just had blinders on since it's a high-efficiency card and doesn't require a separate power connection. But seeing that it requires 400W and AMD has very few 500W PSU's on their list, it's starting to point in that direction. Guess I can try a new PSU and see whether the old 4850 still works haha.

 

[s7evn]

I'll put this out here for those interested in trying to help.

So a week ago I moved all my games to a different hard drive with the steam mover application. I also at that time set up another OS on a SSD so I can currently boot into two versions of windows 7 (old OS and the new one). The old OS came with the computer on it's hard drive and the new one is from an upgrade disc I had. So here's the problem: Whenever I want to play online from the SSD I get lag to the point where my ping is over 1000ms. But it seems if I play from the other hard drive I can play just fine. Does anyone know what I did or how to fix it so I can play online games from the SSD OS?

 

[t-ramp]

I'll put this out here for those interested in trying to help.

So a week ago I moved all my games to a different hard drive with the steam mover application. I also at that time set up another OS on a SSD so I can currently boot into two versions of windows 7 (old OS and the new one). The old OS came with the computer on it's hard drive and the new one is from an upgrade disc I had. So here's the problem: Whenever I want to play online from the SSD I get lag to the point where my ping is over 1000ms. But it seems if I play from the other hard drive I can play just fine. Does anyone know what I did or how to fix it so I can play online games from the SSD OS?

Maybe try to find updated drivers for your network adapter? I would think it's just a driver issue.

 

[arts&crafts]

Quick WIFI question!

I have a wireless modem and Intel Centrino Wireless N 2330 adapter in my laptop. Every so often (A couple of times a night) my wireless on my taskbar will turn to an orange circle. My internet connection will show up but when I click on it, it says it cant connect. To fix this I have to disable/ reinable my wireless card in device manager. What is going on!?

 

[s7evn]

Maybe try to find updated drivers for your network adapter? I would think it's just a driver issue.

Did that and it didn't work. It's really weird, so when I alt-tab out and back in my ping gets lower and then goes high again. I checked the firewall and it's not that (off and on), I DMZ'd my computer as well. From what I can tell DoD:S works fine, CS:S works but the ping jumps around, BF3 doesn't work, CSGO doesn't work, BF:BC2 doesn't work.

I'm just not sure what's up with it.

 

[accx]

I tried losing the 2nd drive, cd, one of the case fans and it didn't make a difference; cut off closer to the 5 second mark actually. It makes sense that it's likely the PSU, I guess I just had blinders on since it's a high-efficiency card and doesn't require a separate power connection. But seeing that it requires 400W and AMD has very few 500W PSU's on their list, it's starting to point in that direction. Guess I can try a new PSU and see whether the old 4850 still works haha.

Yeah. The thing is that if your psu is failing it's possible that the motherboard has sustained damage as well.
But it's only when entering windows it starts to crap out? Not under bios, memtest, linux live cd or windows installation?

 

[WoodWERD]

Posting from my phone As usual I jumped the gun! Went out and bought a new PSU last night, only to have it do the exact same thing as the last one...man this is frustrating. Currently reinstalling windows to see what happens.

But yeah, it held up fine in safe mode/bios previously, and it's pretty much done with the reinstall. Just gotta get the updates and drivers done before I can really test it.

 

[Kerub]

Hello GAF!

I'm trying to cancel my xbox live subscription but it turned out to be a really hard thing to do. I've tried going to xbox.com and change it on "my account" there, but it says I have to log in from my trusted computer which I sold years ago. I can't change my trusted computer because it says I have to install windows live essentials and use internet explorer even though i have done both things.

When I look for a number to call, every support page says I should use the method above (that doesn't work) and there is no number anywhere that I can call.

Am I doing something wrong? I just don't get it. And I don't get it why it's such hard work to cancel this, I've never had problems with subscriptions before.

 

[coldvein]

hey guys, i need some help.

for some reason i can't sign onto PSN on my PS3. my wifi is working.. i run the the connection test and it says "Obtain IP address: succeeded" .. "Internet Connection: Succeeded" .. "PlaystationNetwork: Failed".

been doing this for a couple days.
i only care cuz now when i get on netflix every movie says "cant load this movie at this time blah blah" and im thinking its cuz im not on PSN.

 

[coldvein]

what happened to "no case too small" guys, huh? is my case too small!?

 

[WoodWERD]

Pc locked up after about an hour with the clean win 7 install...guess it's time to start shopping for mobo/cpu/ram upgrades :

 

[mhayze]

Hopefully someone here can help me

I'm trying to find out how to automatically insert headers/greetings in my Outlook. I had it at my last job and i configured it on my old home computer, but I cannot find the first step on Office 2010 for the life of me. In the field im in emails kinda are recommended to be in this format for filekeeping purposes (I have to state the date and the to email field in EVERY outgoing email, and state my contact info at the bottom)

Basically I want an email to open like this:

[Date]
[To email address]

Good [Morning/Afternoon/Evening] [To First Name, Last initial],
bla bla bla

[Thanks],

[My First name my last name]
[My Email address]
[My office phone number]

I figured I could just make a signature for the last part, which is easy enough, but the header i'm still completely stumped, and the only thing I can find online is some hackneyed Office/Outlook plugin someone is trying to sell for 29.99

You could use the "signature" feature for the entire email (no need to have a separate header / signature), or you could create a macro, or use a message template.
By default macros are now disabled, but you should be able to turn it on. Then of course you need to know how to use the macro feature, which is probably beyond the scope of this forum.
The email template feature is a little bit of a pain to access, but you could save it to the toolbar to make life easier. http://office.microsoft.com/en-us/outlook-help/create-an-email-message-template-HA101829163.aspx

 

[Mephala]

I'm having some trouble with my graphics/card/drivers.

Short version: Updated the driver to fix some buggy colours in games and now I have lots of screen tearing.

Currently using Asus EAH5770 Series.

Longer version: I was running stock drivers and had very little problems before, but recently I've been getting some funky colours in some newer games (Dark Souls, Chivalry, etc). Did a little poking and it was suggested that I check my GPU for driver updates. Downloaded an update from the Asus website, updated and Windows ceased running my card all together. A pit of poking around and I found out it was because the driver is unsigned, therefore Windows would not let me Enable my Display Adapter under Device Manager. Did a bit more poking around and found I could force windows to allow unsigned drivers to work from a boot menu. I tried this, it worked. My resolution righted it self and loading some games I have proper colours and all that. Everything seemed perfect until I actually played the game where I found I was experiencing noticeable amounts of screen tearing when I move the camera.

 

[Neverfade]

Youtube videos @ 1080 play for a few seconds, buffer momentarily, replay those same few seconds, and repeats like this for eternity. 720 and lower works fine. What the entire hell is going on here? 11.4.XXXX flash installed.

 

[Gav]

Strange issue with my WiFi connection on my PC.

Upon booting to Windows 7, the internet connection is fine (nearly full signal on my WiFi card in the taskbar indicator too).
After around 10 minutes, the WiFi signal is still there, but i cant connect to anything. So i disconnect, reconnect, and everything is fine - and will be fine for as long as im using the machine.

If i put the computer to sleep though, the same thing happens. Its fine for 10 mins after it wakes up, then i cant connect to anything. Disconnect/reconnect, and everything is fine again.

Drivers for the Wireless card are all ok, connection is fine on all other devices. Not quite sure why this is happening.

 

[TabletopTictacs]

Hey Gaf. I've always had a problem with my new PC where the clock would reset to 23:40 every time I turned it on, but I got used to manually resetting it each time I turned it on. However, since yesterday it has developed a new problem where whenever I try to reset the clock the computer will crash, leading to needing a hard reset.

Pressing ctrl alt delete after trying to adjust the clock gives me the following error message: "The logon process was unable to display security and logon options when CTRL+ALT+DELETE was pressed. If the operating system does not respond, press ESC or restart the computer by using the power switch."

So yeah, this is screwing me over a bit now!

 

[Jzero]

Hey Gaf. I've always had a problem with my new PC where the clock would reset to 23:40 every time I turned it on, but I got used to manually resetting it each time I turned it on. However, since yesterday it has developed a new problem where whenever I try to reset the clock the computer will crash, leading to needing a hard reset.

Pressing ctrl alt delete after trying to adjust the clock gives me the following error message: "The logon process was unable to display security and logon options when CTRL+ALT+DELETE was pressed. If the operating system does not respond, press ESC or restart the computer by using the power switch."

So yeah, this is screwing me over a bit now!

I would think it's the CMOS battery but since the computer is new that shouldn't be the problem. Your computer probably has a messed up CMOS chip.

Check to see if your timezone is correct.

You can also try updating your system bios.

 

[number47]

Im assuming my computer is overheating,because during the summer,it often restarts by itself. It then gives one long beep then two short ones. I replaced the cpu fan.but it still does it.

 

[Alucrid]

So before install windows on my desktop I had a hard drive with a broken W7 installation and the consumer preview version of 8 on another hard drive. I upgraded the hard drive with W8 to the full version but I still have that other drive with the old W7 install, but it won't let me format it. Any ideas on how to do this?

 

[Rayven_king]

hi gaf software question. Does anybody know the install path for Striata Reader, I've already tried to associate the .emc files by going to Default Programs Click “Associate a file type or protocol with a program. striata doesnt show on the listed programs. I've no idea where to find the exe for it

 

[TabletopTictacs]

I would think it's the CMOS battery but since the computer is new that shouldn't be the problem. Your computer probably has a messed up CMOS chip.

Check to see if your timezone is correct.

You can also try updating your system bios.

Yup, I changed the time manually in the BIOS (well, my motherboard's pre-boot menu which I assume is a prettier version of the BIOS) and today for the first time ever the clock was right when I turned my PC on. Strange. Still, not complaining

 

[Binabik15]

GAF, my pc prompted me to install Catalyst 12.10 earlier today (which is weird, because I scanned for updates every day and it always told me there where no new versions), pc went into sleep/powersave mode, whatever W7 has when it idles for too long, and now my screen jitters like a retarded monkey with cerebral palsy, especially in firefox. Not all the time, though. Just watched a youtube vid without any jittering, searched the uninstall software manager without jittering, but now in the gaf window it jitters again.

Already rebooted and turned it completely off and on again.

Now I don't FIND Catalyst in my software folders in the uninstall manager and in Catalyst there's no uninstall option and I don't really want to download third party things like driver sweeper, how does I uninstallz?


And what the hell do I do when a re-install doesn't change it back to normal?

 

[Rebel Leader]

I am having a strange problem that I am concerned with.

I am wondering why the battery indicator sometimes shows the wrong amount.
I was on my laptop for a while checked to see how much I had left and it showed 70%.
Watched a few videos, checked again and now it shows it at 99%..after a few minutes to 98%, then 97%
I ran System Diagnostics and the battery PASSED

I believe the battery is not working properly and Yesterday when I went to charge the battery the light wouldn't turn on until I removed the battery.

I would send it in but it's our only computer that we have and we use it to pay bills.
Would a replacement battery solve this issue?

 

[PaulLFC]

Is there any way to change the number assignment that Windows 8 gives to displays? I have my monitor connected via DVI, and my TV via miniHDMI, and I told it to extend the display. I mainly use the TV for fullscreen Netflix or Lovefilm - but here's the problem:

Windows has for some reason assigned the HDMI port as display 1 automatically, and the monitor as display 2. This doesn't cause any problems, until it tries to open a program or a UAC dialog - for some reason which I can only describe as beyond stupid, it opens them all on the TV, because it thinks it's display 1, despite me saying use the monitor as my primary display. It does this even if the TV is turned off. This despite the fact my monitor visibly appears to "reset" the picture when I turn the TV off - so something somewhere has detected the change, why can't Windows?

So I assume I need to find a way to tell it to take the monitor as display 1, otherwise it's going to keep doing stupid things that should have been solved in QA like opening UAC dialogs on a non-default display device that isn't even switched on.

 

[Derrick01]

So malwarebytes picked up a trojan.zbot and apparently this is designed to steal information. How do I make sure this is fully off my PC? I think the summary I read said that even after removal you have to make registry changes/deletions but I think that article was a couple of years old at least.

 

[Sibylus]

So I got a Biostar TZ77B motherboard as the centerpiece of my new computer, and everything more or less works as expected. However, I can't dual channel my RAM, or use any stick in the third or fourth slots (A2 and B2 in the manual's terms). The first two slots work flawlessly.

Things I have tried:

• Tried all the RAM variations I could think of (Single stick in all slots, dual channel in both configurations, everything). Nope.
• Tried upping the voltage in the bios. Nope.
• Tried using the XMP profile under DRAM Timing Control. Nope.
• Tried brand new sticks of RAM. Nope.

Miscellaneous issues, not sure if related:

• The digital audio berth that came with the motherboard was bent (JSPDIFOUT1). Bent it back into position, though I haven't used it (sits in the board, not at the i/o shield) and there have been zero audio issues.
• Front audio port flashes red, works without issue however.
• Front USB 3.0 slots don't recognize USB sticks or devices (Could have sworn these were working initially).

I've been suspecting it's the motherboard for a while, but I don't quite grok how everything else works flawlessly except this. Installed Windows, have used Windows, played games, map editors, watched movies, the whole nine yards without so much as a crash or otherwise. Feel the slightest bit silly for thinking about going through the whole RMA agony over two RAM slots, but I fear what else may go wrong. Anything else I should try before going to that step?

 

[threetri333]

Help Neogaf, every time someone uses the Microwave Oven, my laptop disconnects. What can I do to stop this? I've been facing this problem for a few months..

Update: I give up, I'm getting myself a 50ft Ethernet Cable http://www.amazon.com/Mediabridge-Computer-Networking-Cat5e-Ethernet/dp/B001W26TIW/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1351830420&sr=8-5&keywords=ethernet+cable

Does anyone know of a good deal for Ethernet Cable, that's very long.

 

[s7evn]

Help Neogaf, every time someone uses the Microwave Oven, my laptop disconnects. What can I do to stop this? I've been facing this problem for a few months..

Is your microwave and router connected to the same circuit?

 

[threetri333]

Is your microwave and router connected to the same circuit?

The Router is on the 2nd floor and the Microwave is on the 1st.

 

[UltimateIke]

The only thing I know to do is use an ethernet connection.

Microwaves interfere with Wi-Fi signals because they work on the same 2.4 GHz band most routers use.

EDIT: You could maybe try changing the channel on the router. http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/tutorials/article.php/3116531

Change access point channels. The microwave in use with this testing didnt severely degrade channels 1 through 6. As a result, avoid the use of these channels in areas of the building where microwave ovens operate. In fact, web browsing was very fast with the microwave running and the access point set to channel 1 and channel 6. Keep in mind, however, that your microwave ovens may operate at different frequencies within the 2.4GHz band. Check the label on the back of the microwave, which should provide the center operating frequency.

 

[Persona7]

So malwarebytes picked up a trojan.zbot and apparently this is designed to steal information. How do I make sure this is fully off my PC? I think the summary I read said that even after removal you have to make registry changes/deletions but I think that article was a couple of years old at least.

Make sure you scan all your external drives and USB sticks as well as any media you may have burned or copied onto another device.

You can also make a Bit Defender live CD / Live USB and scan from there.

http://download.bitdefender.com/rescue_cd/

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/bitdefender-rescue-cd-removes-viruses-fails/

 

[Derrick01]

Make sure you scan all your external drives and USB sticks as well as any media you may have burned or copied onto another device.

You can also make a Bit Defender live CD / Live USB and scan from there.

http://download.bitdefender.com/rescue_cd/

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/bitdefender-rescue-cd-removes-viruses-fails/

I picked it up yesterday in a short time frame so I didn't put anything into my PC. It either came from a gaf thread or when I updated ccleaner (don't know how it could come from there though).

Malwarebytes hasn't picked up anything since then but I guess I'm just asking if there's any way to make sure it's fully gone. I'm pretty nervous about stuff designed to steal information.

 

[daxy]

So my laptop broke yesterday. When I boot it up I get "Non-system disk or disk error. Replace and strike any key when ready". Just stays on there no matter what. Also makes a constant soft beeping sound. I've written it off as broken beyond conventional repair, but what I was wondering is whether I can access my data somehow so I can recover my saved games and other important data. (But mostly my saved games, hehe)

Normally it runs Win 7 and I can boot into Ubuntu from a USB stick still, if that's at all relevant. My hard drive doesn't show up when I look for it though.

Thanks!